


In The Air

by BloodFrost



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi (2017), Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, kylux - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Star Wars Setting, Armitage Hux Has Feelings, Armitage Hux Needs A Hug, Armitage Hux/Kylo Ren Fluff, Didn't Know They Were Dating, Falling In Love, First Dates, First Kiss, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Fluffy Ending, I Ship It, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Kylo Ren Needs a Hug, Kylux - Freeform, LGBTQ Character, LGBTQ Themes, Love, M/M, Online Dating, Post-Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Romantic Fluff, Star Wars - Freeform, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-08
Updated: 2018-04-08
Packaged: 2019-04-19 18:57:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14243679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BloodFrost/pseuds/BloodFrost
Summary: Things in the First Order have been drastically different since the death of Supreme Leader Snoke, and the rise of Kylo Ren as Ruler. Ren tries his hardest to breed an air of openness and exploration, in contrast to the harsh oppression everyone faced under his former master.One of the things he signs off on is a new program that allows people in the Order to connect with each other via a file on their DataPads, that introduces the opportunity for people to make new friends, and, possibly, more.But not everyone is interested in this ‘opportunity’, in particular a certain red headed General.





	In The Air

Hux smiled to himself as he felt the familiar buzz-buzz of his DataPad in his pocket, indicating that he had a message. Normally such a thing would cause him to groan and develop a headache, but this situation had changed drastically for the better.

A few weeks ago, the Human Resources department of the First Order came up with an idea for instituting an electronic dating service, that they cleverly called DataPad Daters. The premise was simple; whoever was interested would create a profile, tell their basic likes and dislikes, an be connected with another person who closely matched them. But the catch was that everything was very anonymous; no self-holos were allowed on the profile, and no talk whatsoever of job detail within the Order.

When Hux first heard of this idea, he had shot it down almost immediately. He felt that courtship and ‘dating’, if indulged in at all, should be done on ones own private time. Yet as with most things he shot down, HR took it over his head to the new Supreme Leader, Kylo Ren, who gave the OK for it faster than Hux could draw in the breath to protest.

That little act had irritated Hux to no end. He knew that Ren didn’t give a damn about love or any of that nonsense; he had only okay’d this inane bantha fodder to get under Hux’s skin. Just as he had been doing ever since he had taken over his nose coveted position from Supreme Leader Snoke.

When Hux questioned him about it, Ren had given him a long-winded explanation about how he was trying to cast off some of the pall of gloom that Snoke had instituted here, and show people that under HIS, Ren’s, rule, everything was different.

“You know,” Ren told him, with a barely-concealed smirk on his face, “YOU should give it a try. Who knows; you might find the love of your life, Armitage.”

Hux had scoffed, but lightly. _Lightly._ New Order or not, Kylo Ren was still possessed of a hair-trigger temper, and some days it was easier to set him off than others. The last thing Hux needed was another trip to Medical Bay, if Ren chose to toss him through a wall again.

Yet as opposed as he was to the idea, one night, after having completed a load of paperwork ahead of schedule, he found himself staring at the disdainful program on his DataPad. After some internal debate, he thought, what could the harm be? Nobody would know it was him, right?

He created a profile for himself, and found it fascinating, how difficult it was to sum up ones self in a couple of vague sentences. Eventually he put down something along the lines of “32, enjoys reading, cooking and composing, seeks somebody sane with sense of humor.”

Days passed, and Hux forgot all about it. Then one day, as he was getting ready for bed, his DataPad buzzed. He picked it up and found he had a message, from another profile.

_What do you consider ‘sane’? Or ‘funny’, for that matter?_

That’s a good question, Hux thought to himself, as he typed out a reply.

**You know, I’m not really sure. But I’ve always heard its best to go after somebody who isn’t like yourself.**

A few minutes passed, and then:

_So basically you’re crazy AND boring? That’s not a good combo._

Hux actually laughed out loud at that, the unfamiliar sound echoing around his quarters. He exchanged more teasing, lighthearted messages with the mystery person far into the night, and, before he finally went to bed, he actually found himself feeling good for once.

Now, several days later, the person had messaged him yet again, and Hux could hardly keep the smile off of his face as he pulled his DataPad from his pocket. 

_Do you ever feel like pulling out a blaster and firing it directly into your temple, while you’re at work?_

**Every. Day. Glad to see I’m not alone. Can I ask what it is do you DO? What department you report to?**

_If I told you, you wouldn't speak to me anymore._

Hux paused, thinking about that. The most likely explanation he could think of was that the person worked in some lower level of the base, like maintenance, or sanitation.

Well, Hux didn't care. Despite the appearance he cast otherwise, titles and labels didn't mean all that much to him. He had spoken to this person long enough to know that, whoever they were, he liked them. They were sweet, and funny, and shared many of the same interests as Hux.

Another question popped into Hux's mind, and he typed,

**Well, let me ask you a different question, then: are you a man, or a woman?**

He waited for a while, straightening up the remainder of his papers, when his DataPad beeped back at him.

_Does it matter?_

**No. I've enjoyed the company of women and men, before. I'm just curious.**

_Man._

Hux smiled to himself. He had thought as much, based on the things that the mystery man had said in the past. But again, as in the case of the job position, Hux didn't really care. He hadn't dated anyone, of any gender, for quite some time.

Then it occurred to him; had HE ever revealed that he was a man, as well? He didn't think so.

**I'm one too, just so you know.**

A pause, and then: _I've never been with a man before. But, I really like you._

Hux blushed at that, while at the same time feeling absurdly stupid. To get this excited over a few messages from some random man on the base - - he must be very lonely, indeed. 

**Good. I like you.**

_So I take it you don’t want to tell me what you do, either?_

Hux sighed to himself, thinking of how to answer that. Eventually he typed,

**I oversee a lot of people do a lot of arbitrary tasks every day. It can get tedious but I like my position and I (mostly) like those I work with.**

_You sound intelligent. I like that in a person._

Hux grinned, and typed back,

**I like a man who knows how to give a compliment, even if it’s an undeserved one.**

~~

The next few days were good ones for Hux. He was surprised at how fast the time went, when he had something to look forward to. His mystery man messaged him at odd times, but each time Hux heard the little buzz or beep, a smile jumped to his face.

Their conversations became a lot deeper, as time went on. Hux told him a bit about his childhood, about his schooling, and places he had travelled to. The other man seemed reluctant to talk about either his family or his early life, leaving Hux to deduce that he likely had a difficult relationship with his family, and a troubled past. He also guessed that the man didn’t have much in the way of formal schooling; his grammar was just a bit off, and he incorporated many words into their talks that one would not hear unless having spent a lot of time in cantinas, or sabacc tables, or the like.

Yet he was clearly very intelligent in other ways. He was knowledgeable about art, and music, and had a really impressive knack for poetry. After gentle pleading from Hux, he shared a few of his poems with the redhead; and Hux was blown away by the depth of feeling behind each piece.

Overall, Hux got the impression that this person, whoever he was, was like Hux himself. Someone who tried his best to move through the world, and face all the challenges given to him.

_Sometimes I just feel so alone, you know? I feel like I have my work, and I try to do a good job at it, but my personal life is so empty, so devoid of meaning, of purpose._

**You're NOT alone. I feel like that, too. Every single day. I'm thankful to have someone to talk to, that understands.**

_Me, too. So I know I’ve asked this before, but I’m a visual person. I’d really like SOME clue as to what you look like. Is asking for a holo too much?_

**I feel the same about you. But, don’t laugh, I’m a bit self-conscious of my looks.**

_So am I, actually. So how about we don't send a full holo; just a body part?_

**That sounds a little inappropriate, don't you think?**

_I didn't mean anything explicit. I meant something like, your lips. Just your lips. I'll send you mine. Is that acceptable?_

**Very.**

Hux spent the next 15 minutes trying to capture a decent image of his lips. He finally got frustrated and settled on the best one, and hit Send. Within moments, he received an image back. The lips in the picture were full, and a natural dark red. The hollow just above his lips contained pale skin, highlighted by the shadow of past facial hair.

And he was smiling.

**I realize that this is an odd thing to say to a man, but your lips are astoundingly pretty.**

_So are yours. If it isn't too forward to say, I can see myself kissing them. A lot._

Hux smiled to himself, feeling absurdly pleased. And again, that feeling of surreal shame came over him. He scolded himself, telling himself that nothing would ever come out of this, that the man in question was likely trying to score a quick tryst rather than an actual relationship.

And was Hux, himself, looking for a real relationship? He hasn’t had one in almost 10 years, and he had gotten used to being alone. Maybe TOO used to being alone, if he was jumping at attention like this. When was the last time he had kissed somebody? When was the last time he had even hugged anyone? This man, whoever he was, would likely think Hux to be ugly and awkward, IF they ever did meet up.

His father hadn’t taught Hux many useful things in life, but if it was one thing he admired from the man, it was his ability to know when to pull out of a situation before harm could come to him.

**Kissing them? No. You don’t know me, my friend. And you wouldn’t want to. I’m sorry that I’ve been so flirtatious, I can see now that that was an error on my part. I think it might be best if you spent time pursuing a different profile.**

He read and re-read that statement before hitting send; then he muted the app and closed up his DataPad.

He spent all night tossing and turning, feeling unsettled and wondering whether he had done the right thing.

Walking into the conference room the next morning, Hux could tell that Ren was in one of his moods. He was sitting up straight in his chair (always a bad sign), was glaring daggers into his DataPad, and his lightsaber was sitting on the table in front of him, the Force making it spin around slowly in circles.

“Good morning, Supreme Leader,” Hux said as cheerfully as possible.

Ren glanced up at him, and snarled “Take your good morning and shove it where the sun doesn’t shine, General.”

Hux winced, but said nothing smart back. After all, he wasn’t in the greatest of moods himself, and he didn’t need physical pain to compound his misery. Instead he focused on business matters.

“Did you go over my proposal for expanding the Stormtrooper barracks?”

“No. That’s what this meeting is for today, right?”

Hux grit his teeth and counted to ten, slowly, in his head. 

“Yes, Supreme Leader, but you were supposed to go over it and come in today with revisions, BEFORE I present it to the group. Which is why I sent it to you, with an URGENT coding, THREE nights ago.”

Ren scowled, and Hux noticed that the lightsaber had stopped spinning, and the business end was now pointing directly at Hux.

“I don’t need any lectures from you today, _Armitage_. I’M the ruler, here, and I’ll do as I please.”

Before he could stop himself, Hux shot back at him “You’d make a much more convincing ruler, _Kylo_ , if you weren’t acting like a spoiled son of a bitch all of the time.”

By now more people had come into the room, and there were audible gasps, upon hearing how Hux was speaking to Leader Ren. Hux couldn’t read minds but he’d have bet his life that more than a few people were already planning what to wear to his funeral, when Ren undoubtedly killed him.

But Ren’s reaction was one he didn’t expect. Instead of getting angry, he just sighed and nodded. 

“Maybe you’re right, Hux. I’m sorry, I should have gone over what I was supposed to. I’ll do that tonight, and we’ll postpone this meeting until tomorrow morning. Okay? Everyone dismissed until then.”

He stood up and left quickly, his guards trailing behind him. So quickly that the shocked Hux didn’t even have the time to say thank you. For the first time in a long time, Hux found himself wondering whether he should go and apologize to Ren, for the abrupt (and unprofessional) way he had spoken to him. It seemed he had almost hurt Ren’s feelings.

Thinking of Ren’s hurt feelings made Hux think of the other feelings he had undoubtedly hurt; the mystery man. 

When Hux got back to his office, he slipped his DataPad from his pocket, and unmuted the app. Right away a message from last night popped up, and he read it to himself.

 _Look; I know this is strange. I feel it too. But the truth is that I’m just a person who’s been lonely for a very long time, and I’m not fully sure anymore what it is I’m looking for, or even NOT looking for. The only thing I know for certain is that I like talking to you, you make me feel better, and I don’t want our conversations to stop. Please? Even if we never meet, even if we do meet and decide that all we can be is friends, I don’t want this to stop. Okay?_

Hux looked at the time on the message; the man had sent it over 12 hours ago. Would it be too late to reply? Would he answer back? And what would Hux even say?

Unspooling from his fingers, Hux was mildly surprised to read the words,

**I want to meet you. Friends or more, I want to see where this goes.**

He waited with a pounding heart, but no message came back. He sighed, thinking he had been too late, and dejectedly started in on his paperwork for the day. He got halfway through a stack when the buzz-buzz made his heart leap into his throat.

_Tomorrow evening, 7pm, the unused storage room in sector 34-X?_

**Perfect. I’ll see you then.**

~~

Thereby followed another sleepless night for Hux, but this time, for different reasons. He was so scared of tomorrow evening, yet at the same time so excited, that he could hardly stand it. The mystery man had explained that his rank made the privacy of the storage room necessary, and Hux had agreed, based on his own rank. He had also said he would be bringing the man a very specific type of flower, so that he would know for sure that it was him.

He went about his tasks the next day as normally as he could. Ren was in an infinitely better mood, and had made many helpful revisions to Hux’s barracks proposal, which ensured a delightfully smooth meeting for everyone.

Later in the day, Hux went to the Officer’s cafeteria for lunch. He hardly ever came in here, because he hardly ever ate the midday meal, but decided that his nerves could use a bit of food, to calm him down.

As he ate, he pretended to look at his DataPad, but really, he was observing the people around him. He was still attempting to figure out who his 'friend' was, but it was difficult. The only physical aspect he knew of the man, was that he was tall, had dark hair, and pretty lips. The characteristics weren't as defining as one would think; there were many tall men in the Order, and at least half of them had dark hair. As for the lips, well, Hux couldn't really go around looking at people's lips, could he?

His concentration was broken, when Phasma sat down across from him.

Hux had never really been one to use the label of 'friend', but, if asked, he would call the beautiful blonde woman his friend. The two had known each other since his days as a cadet, and when he was promoted to General, the first thing he did was elevate her rank to Captain. In private, they were on a first-name basis, but in public, around others, they maintained an air of professionalism.

"Good afternoon, General. How are you?"

"I'm well. Yourself?"

"A bit put-out, actually. I have a problem and I'm not sure what the solution should be."

Hux put down his fork and leaned forward.

"Solving problems is my forte. What is it? Perhaps I can help."

Phasma also leaned forward. Lowering her voice, she said, "You know that new DataPad Dating program?"

Hux nodded.

"Well, I -- I think I met someone. Someone that I really like."

Hux smiled. "That's wonderful, Phasma. Congratulations."

"It's not wonderful, it's terrifying. Everything is nice when we're just exchanging messages, but now, this person wants to meet face to face. I've told her enough about me so that --"

" _Her_?", Hux asked, raising an eyebrow.

Phasma cursed, looking down. "Damn, I didn't mean to say that. Well, yes, it's a woman. And that's another problem; I've never been with a woman before. I've never even thought about it . But this one -- she's special. I could see myself being with her."

Hux reached over and patted Phasma's hand. "Love, so I'm told, takes on all shapes and forms. Now, you like this person, and they like you. And they want to meet you. Where, exactly, is the problem?"

"What if she doesn't like me, when she sees me? What if she thinks I'm too tall, or ugly, or something?"

"Maker, Phasma, are you in possession of a mirror in your quarters? If not, I clearly need to have one delivered to you immediately. You're not 'ugly'. You're lightyears from it."

Phasma blushed at the compliment. She picked her fork back up, absently pushing around her vegetables. "Thank you, General. But I'm still unsure about what to do."

"You need to meet her. You HAVE to. This could be the start of something wonderful for you. And if it isn't meant to work out, at least you'll know. It's better than sitting around love-sick, wondering what COULD have been."

Phasma nodded. "I think you're right. I'm going to message her right now and ask her to meet me tonight, after my shift."

She stood up. "Thank you, General."

"Good luck, Phasma," he said, sipping his tea as he watched her walk away.

Towards the end of his meal, the truth of the words he had spoken to Phasma, really started to hit him.

"What ARE you afraid of, Armitage?", he mumbled to himself, flipping his DataPad around in his hands. "This could be everything. This could --"

"What could be everything?"

Hux jumped, then turned around, looking up at a smirking Kylo Ren. Hux frowned, he really didn't find it becoming to the prestigious rank of Supreme Leader, to be seen in a common cafeteria, like anybody else. He had said this to Ren multiple times in the past, only to be met with sarcasm and dismissal.

And it didn't make him any less noticeable, considering he had his two huge guards with him, red-cloaked, silent and menacing.

Nevertheless, despite his disapproval, Hux forced a polite expression on to his face, and said,

"Supreme Leader. How are you this afternoon?"

"Hungry." He turned to one of the guards and spoke rapidly to him, ordering him to go and get him a tray of food from the serving line. Then he sat himself down across from Hux. He looked at the DataPad still clutched in Hux's hand, and frowned.

"Do you never stop working, General?”

Before he could control his mouth, Hux blurted out “Well, _somebody_ has to.”

Kylo raised an eyebrow. His guard came back with his tray, setting it down in front of him before moving away to join the other guard against the wall.

“Are you implying that I don’t work?”, Kylo asked as he lifted a forkful of cake to his mouth.

“No. I’m not.”

“Well it certainly sounded like that’s what you were saying.”

“Anything can sound like anything if you read into it hard enough. Now, forgive me, but I don’t really feel like arguing with you right now. I’ve a bit of a headache.”

“Then take the rest of the afternoon to yourself. Go and lie down or something.”

Hux wished he could do that. A nap might calm his nerves, while helping the day to pass a bit faster. But as it was, he was too keyed-up to even think about laying down.

“I’m fine,” he answered Ren, taking a small sip of his tea. “I appreciate the concern.”

Ren began to dig into his meal, and Hux watched him, mildly fascinated. Ren ate more than anyone he had ever met before, and he often wondered how he put away so much without being monstrously huge on top of it.

As if reading his mind, Ren said, “I’m going to have to run five laps just to work off this chocolate cake alone.”

A thought occurred to Hux; his friend had mentioned before that he enjoyed working out, too. He knew that Ren often used the common room area gym instead of his own private facility, and he wondered if there was a chance he could invite himself along, and maybe get a preview-glimpse of his secret admirer.

But before he could suggest something, Ren pushed back his tray and said, jokingly, “Then again, I’m the Supreme Leader, now. I can get big if I want to. I think I’ll do what YOU should be doing, and take a nap, instead.”

He stood up to go, then turned halfway across the room and came back.

“That reminds me; I need you to clear my schedule for me past 6pm today.”

“Why?”

“I’m not paying you to ask why, General. Just do it.”

Hux nodded and opened up his DataPad to do as he was told. He acted annoyed, but really, he was relieved. He was already thinking up excuses to get out of his own duties, to be free for his meeting later. Now it seemed as though the problem had taken care of itself.

“Anything else, your Highness?”, Hux murmured in a low, sarcastic voice.

“You know, Hux, one day I’m going to kill you. I don’t know when, and I don’t know how, but I’m definitely going to do it. And it’ll surprise the holy hell out of you.”

Hux raised an eyebrow, smiled, and calmly folded his hands together in front of him. 

“I rather doubt that, Supreme Leader. Very few things surprise me anymore.”

Ren just smiled back. “We’ll see. Have a lovely evening.”

~~

Hux walked down the hallway, nervously straightening his hair, brushing off his clothes, and a number of fidgety little gestures. He was on his way to the storage room, and trying desperately hard to calm himself. He was early so that he would be the first one there.

When he got to the door and pushed it in, he jumped back a step, startled.

Kylo Ren was in there, standing and staring out the single window. He turned around when the door opened, and the look on his face was sour, upon seeing who it was.

“Supreme Leader,” Hux said grudgingly, nodding at him. “This is unexpected; I wasn't aware anyone besides myself knew of this place."

"What are you doing in here?" Kylo asked him, forgoing any semblance of politeness.

"I, er, I have a--a meeting."

"In a storage room? Is something wrong with your office?"

"A personal meeting," Hux specified, feeling that he was blushing. Maker, couldn't Ren just take the hint and go away? There was an entire ship full of people who could go out and harass; why did he have to choose to be in _here_? Hux glanced anxiously at the door; if his admirer came in and saw the Supreme Leader standing here, he'd surely get cold feet and leave.

"May I be so bold as to ask why YOU'RE in here?", Hux asked him, somewhat impatiently.

"I, er, I have to meet someone in here, as well."

Hux raised an eyebrow. "In a storage room?", he asked skeptically, repeating Ren's earlier question to him. "Is there something wrong with your throne room?"

"I don't appreciate being questioned, General. I WOULD, however, appreciate you leaving."

Hux sighed and turned around quickly, heading for the door. As he walked, he tapped out a message to Him, telling him that the meeting had to be moved somewhere else. He hit send and pushed open the door.

A 'ding' behind him caught his attention.

He turned.

Ren had his DataPad in his hands, apparently having just received a message. Hux felt his heart drop into his feet, as an awful suspicion worked its way up his throat.

He closed the door and came back inside.

"Supreme Leader."

Ren didn't look up at him, as he was busy typing into his DataPad.

"What is it? I'm busy."

"Are -- are you here to meet someone, _new_? Someone with a honey-rose in his jacket, perhaps?"

Ren looked up slowly, his face a mask of disbelief.

"How would you --"

Slowly, as if in a dream, Hux saw himself reach into his inner jacket pocket and pull out the beautiful flower he had placed there. He wordlessly handed it to Ren, who took it just as silently, staring at him.

Ren pushed Send on his message, and, immediately, Hux's DataPad buzzed. He held it up to Kylo's face, where the message Ren had just typed to him was flashing in blue.

"You're ImperialRed?"  
"YOU'RE BygonePower?!"

"Oh, God," Kylo said, softly. He sat down on an empty crate, covering his face with his hands. "Oh, God, oh, God, oh, God."

He peeked through his fingers at Hux, his face having turned a bright pink. 

"Did you KNOW it was me this whole time?!", he demanded, somewhat angrily.

Hux sat down next to him, cautiously.

"No, I didn't. I swear I didn't. Did you know it was ME?"

"No! I . . . I can't believe this.”

“YOU were the one, writing all those beautiful poems?"

"You -- you thought they were beautiful?"

"I thought they were some of the most wonderful things I had ever read," Hux answered him honestly. "In fact, the one you wrote, "Nightfall. I printed that out and framed it over my bed. Can I ask what its about?"

"It's about the night before my mother sent me away to Skywalker."

Thinking about it, Hux could see how Kylo's explanation made sense. The poem was full of such conflicting images, of anger, fear, hope, love, confusion.

But they had bigger things to talk about, besides a pretty poem.

Hux had had such a long, tumultuous road with Kylo Ren, that it was unfathomable, to reconcile the man in front of him, with the sweet, attentive sender of messages on his DataPad.

“It really, really made me happy, thinking I had someone to talk to,” Hux said in a low voice, hardly aware of the fact that he was speaking out-loud.

“It made me happy, too. Was everything you told me, about yourself, the truth?”

“Every single word. And you?”

“Same.”

Now he stood up and stepped close to Hux. He reached out his hand towards his face, then drew it back, timidly, as if afraid.

“Your - - your lips. They ARE pretty. Even better up-close. Can’t believe I never noticed that before.”

Hux could feel himself blush. “Thanks,” he muttered self-consciously. “But do you see now why I couldn’t tell you anything else about me? If I had said, red hair, you would have guessed in a second.”

Ren chuckled. “Very true. I came close to telling you that I knew how to use a lightsaber, but I figured THAT would give me away, too.”

They both laughed, and it felt a bit easier. Hux stopped first, and he asked,

“So, what do we do, now?”

"There are two ways this can go, Hux," Kylo said, slowly. "The first, we get up. We walk out of here. I go back to my chambers, you go to yours. Once we walk out of that door, we never, EVER talk about this again. Not to other people, not in our heads, not even to each other. Ever."

Hux frowned, looking down at his boots. Heart pounding, he said, softly, "I don't like that idea."

"Neither do I."

Hux looked up at him, timid but hopeful. "What's the second option?"

"The second option, is that we walk out of here, together. We go to my chambers, I have the kitchen staff send us up a snack. We talk about this, rationally, and together. Clearly, we have a LOT in common with each other, and maybe, just maybe, this is worth exploring.”

“Before I give you my vote, can I do something first?”

“Yes?”

“You promise you won’t kill me?”

“Yes - -?”

Steeling himself, Hux stepped forward, took Ren’s face between his hands, and kissed him. His mouth was firm but sweet against Ren’s own, but Ren’s lips were surprisingly soft, and he smelled quite good. Hux had a difficult time separating himself from him, but when he did, he was relieved to see that Kylo was smiling at him.

"I vote for Option 2," he told Kylo, with a smile of his own.

Kylo placed the flower that Hux had given him in his own inner pocket. "I do, too."

They walked out of the room and in the direction of Ren’s quarters. Halfway there, Hux started to laugh, and by the time they reached Ren’s door, he felt helpless to stop.

“What’s so funny?”

“I was just thinking about what I said earlier, about how nothing surprises me anymore. Well, _this_ , and you, have achieved the impossible. So congratulations.”

Kylo smiled, and then he pushed Hux against the door, leaned in, and the two shared their second kiss of the evening.

“Surprise,” he said, before going for a third.


End file.
